Myrtle Beach

Oil power plant in South Carolina, United States of America. Approximate location 33.7083, -78.9241.

OilSouth CarolinaUnited States of AmericaCO₂ modelled

Myrtle Beach is a 112 MW oil power station in South Carolina, United States of America. It is operated by South Carolina Public Service Authority. Based on its capacity (estimated), it can supply roughly 84k homes (estimated). It ranks #2658 of 10,938 United States of America power plants by installed capacity. Commissioned in 1969, it is around 57 years old — an older, legacy facility. Its modelled annual emissions are 73,233 t CO₂/yr (Climate TRACE), equivalent to about 17k cars driven for a year. In context, oil supplies about 0.7% of United States of America's electricity; the national grid averages 384 gCO₂/kWh (43.0% low-carbon) (2025).

112Source-backed capacity
83,720homes powered (est.)
73,233t CO₂ / yr (Climate TRACE)
1969commissioned (~57 yrs)

Plant data: WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0), id USA0003320.

Data status

Known data

FacilityMyrtle Beach WRI
CountryUnited States of America · South Carolina WRI
Coordinates33.7083, -78.9241 WRI
FuelOil WRI
MW installed capacity112 MW WRI source record; scope not independently normalised
OwnerSouth Carolina Public Service Authority WRI
Commissioned1969 WRI

Modelled source data

CO₂ emissions73,233 t CO₂/yr modelled · Climate TRACE

Calculated from dataset

Capacity rank in country#2658 of 10938 calculated
Fuel-specific rank in country#61 of 902 calculated
Capacity vs country/fuel peers15.49× · 7 MW median · 902 peers calculated
Homes-powered equivalent83,720 calculated
Climate12.0°C · HDD 2,188 derived from coordinates
Environmental severityC4 · 36/100 derived from coordinates

Not available

TechnologyNot available not in dataset
GWh reported / yrNot available not in dataset

Known, modelled and calculated values are kept separate. Missing fields are shown as unavailable.

Data provenance

The capacity and/or fuel fields on this page include a source-backed provenance label from GEM, an official registry, Wikidata, OSM, or a cross-source match.

capacity: Wikidata P2109 nameplate capacity; fuel: WRI source-record fuel

In context: how this plant compares

At 112 MW, Myrtle Beach is well above the median oil plant in United States of America (7 MW). Oil-fired plants burn heavy fuel oil or diesel, usually as peaking or backup capacity on islands and grids without gas pipelines; high fuel cost keeps their utilisation low.

Capacity comparison computed from the WRI Global Power Plant Database; fuel-type context is general engineering background.

~73,233 t CO₂/yr (modelled) — in everyday terms

This facility's annual emissions are roughly equivalent to:

17kpassenger cars driven for a year
9.6khomes' yearly energy use
1.2 milliontree seedlings grown 10 years to absorb it

Equivalencies via US EPA Greenhouse Gas Equivalencies; modelled emissions from Climate TRACE.

Reported generation trend

2013: -1 GWh20132014: 1 GWh20142015: 0 GWh20152016: -1 GWh20162017: 0 GWh20172018: 1 GWh20182019: -1 GWh20191 GWh

Annual generation (GWh), WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0).

Owner

Operated by South Carolina Public Service Authority. All plants by this company →

Local climate & thermal context

This oil plant burns oil or diesel to drive turbines or reciprocating engines. It sits in a humid subtropical climate (Köppen Cfa) — Northern Hemisphere, latitude 33.7°N — which shapes how much energy it can produce and how its output varies through the year.

12.0°Cannual mean temp
2,188heating degree-days (base 18°C)
6cooling degree-days (base 18°C)
-1 melevation

Monthly mean temperature

J: 5 °CJF: 6 °CFM: 9 °CMA: 12 °CAM: 14 °CMJ: 17 °CJJ: 18 °CJA: 18 °CAS: 16 °CSO: 12 °CON: 9 °CND: 7 °CD18 °C

Heating degree-days here run 11% below the median power plant in this dataset — a proxy for how much extra energy heated equipment must replace through its surfaces in winter.

Climate heat-demand index: 46/100 — this site sits in the mid third of the power plants we cover by heating degree-days.

Climate normals: WorldClim 2.1 (1970–2000 monthly normals, 10 arc-min, CC BY 4.0); zone: Köppen-Geiger world climate classification (Kottek et al. 2006, 0.5° grid). Degree-days & heat-demand index computed by PowerAtlas — a modelled heat-demand proxy, not a measured site figure.

Site climate & environmental severity

For a plant’s outdoor hardware — heat-recovery steam generators (HRSG), expansion joints, valves, flanges and their insulation — the local climate sets how fast unprotected steel and coatings degrade. This site sits in a corrosive environment (estimated ISO 9223 class C4 — High), with humidity / wetness the leading environmental stress.

C4ISO 9223 corrosivity (indicative)
36/100environmental-severity index
12.8°Cseasonal temperature swing
18 kmdistance to coast

Higher environmental severity is exactly where protective removable insulation pays back most: a sheltered micro-climate slows corrosion, UV and thermal-cycling damage and extends outdoor hardware service life. This is an indicative site-climate context — not a condition assessment of any specific plant or operator.

Indicative estimate via the ISO 9223:2012 informative method (atmospheric corrosivity from temperature, time-of-wetness and airborne salinity), using WorldClim climate normals, the Köppen-Geiger class and coast distance. Indicative, not a measured corrosion rate.

How it compares & nearby plants

The #61 largest oil power plant of 902 in United States of America by capacity.

United States of America has 902 oil power plants in this dataset, together about 40,022 MW of capacity.

Nearby power plants

Location

Coordinates 33.7083, -78.9241 from WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0). View on OpenStreetMap.

Frequently asked questions

What type of power plant is Myrtle Beach?

Myrtle Beach is a 112 MW source-record oil power plant in South Carolina, United States of America, commissioned in 1969.

How many homes can Myrtle Beach power?

Its output is enough to supply roughly 83,720 homes (estimated).

Who operates Myrtle Beach?

Myrtle Beach is operated by South Carolina Public Service Authority.

How much CO₂ does Myrtle Beach emit?

Myrtle Beach has modelled emissions of about 73,233 tonnes of CO₂ per year (Climate TRACE).

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